More than one saint who didn’t die a martyr’s death strongly desired to do so. James and John, in today’s gospel, seem very eager to do so—even if only to secure a special place at Jesus’ right and left. And Jesus does seem to promise them both the grace of martyrdom with his assurance that of my chalice you will indeed drink. And yet Christian tradition has always maintained that John did not die a martyr’s death, in contrast to his brother, James, who did. This suggests that dying for Christ and martyrdom are about more than suffering a violent death in witness to Christ. Indeed, Saint Paul describes what might be termed a “living death” that consists in the various sufferings that Christians endure as a consequence of their allegiance to Christ. We, who live, says Saint Paul, are constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus. This constantly being given up to death is related to what he terms being afflicted in every way but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. However, this living death—or living martyrdom—doesn’t occur simply in the presence of human suffering. It is only when we embrace inevitable and unavoidable sufferings undergone because we bear the name of Christ and embrace them in trusting love that we too are privileged to drink from the chalice of which Christ and the martyrs drank. To the degree that we have rebelled against suffering and sought escape from the difficult consequences of Christian discipleship let us ask forgiveness and through the intercession of Saint James receive the courage and trust to embrace the cross so that by constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.